Ethel Caterham was recognized as the oldest living person in April 2025
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NEED TO KNOW
- Ethel Caterham, who became the world’s oldest living person last year, celebrated her 117th birthday on Friday, Aug. 21
- She said that she “had a lovely day celebrating with my family and friends”
- Caterham was also wished a happy birthday by the world’s oldest man, João Marinho Neto, who held up a photo of her from his home country of Brazil
Ethel Caterham, who became the world’s oldest living person last year, is celebrating her 117th birthday.
On Friday, Aug. 21, Caterham told the U.K.’s PA Media news agency that she “had a lovely day celebrating with my family and friends” on her birthday, per CNN and the BBC.
She was also wished a happy birthday by the world’s oldest man, João Marinho Neto, who held up a celebratory photo of her from his home country of Brazil, according to Guinness World Records.
Following the death of 116-year-old Brazilian nun Inah Canabarro Lucas, Caterham became the world’s oldest living person at 115 years and 252 days old. She is now the first-ever British person to reach the age of 117.
Upon receiving that honor, Caterham, who lives in a nursing home in Surrey in southeast England, revealed her secret to living a long life.
“Never arguing with anyone, I listen and I do what I like,” she told the Associated Press in May 2025.
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During an interview with BBC Radio Surrey in 2020, Caterham also said she took “everything in stride, the highs and the lows,” The Guardian reported.
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When the Salisbury Journal asked Caterham about the secret to her long life, she said, “Say yes to every opportunity because you never know what it will lead to. Have a positive mental attitude and have everything in moderation,” Guinness reported.
Shortly after her 116th birthday last year, Caterham was visited by King Charles, who had traveled to Surrey to meet her and give her a birthday card.
During their visit, Caterham told him that she recalled when Queen Elizabeth invested him as the Prince of Wales in 1969 when he was 21. “I remember when your mother crowned you in Caernarfon Castle,” she said.
“All the girls were in love with you and wanted to marry you,” she continued, prompting a laugh from the King.
One of her granddaughters, Kate Henderson, added at the time: “You were saying that the other day, weren’t you? You said, ‘Prince Charles was so handsome. All the girls were in love with him.’ A true prince — and now the King.”
Jeanne Calment of France still holds the title for the oldest person ever. She was 122 years 164 days old when she died in 1997, according to Guinness.
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